Ed. note: this review previously appeared on the author’s old website The Moon is a Dead World and is reprinted here for the new release.
1981’s Venom from director Piers Haggard was based on a novel by Alan Scholefield, a writer influenced by his life in South Africa whose early works didn’t capture much reader interest until his Macrae and Silver crime drama novels in the 1990s. But the novel Venom became a surprise hit, quickly picked up for a movie adaptation; something about the combination of a black mamba snake trapped in an apartment with three kidnappers and their victims screamed “cinematic hit,” and Haggard set to work assembling a great cast for his snake-in-the-ductwork thriller.
The premise is simple, and it combines the two prime interests of Scholefield’s writing. Young Philip Hopkins (Lance Holcomb) buys a common snake from the pet store, but a woman taking over for the store owner accidentally replaces the safe snake with a horribly deadly black mamba, whose poison kills 100% of the time without an antivenom and only 50% of the time with the antidote. To make matters worse, Jacmel (Klaus Kinski) has colluded with the boy’s maid Louise (Susan George) and butler Dave (Oliver Reed) to stage a kidnapping when Philip’s mother is out of town. Things just aren’t looking good for anyone in this situation except for maybe Phil’s grandfather Howard (Sterling Hayden), since he’s a rugged South African explorer.
Keeping the plot simple is what helps Venom achieve its two goals: a tense creature feature, and a tense criminal standoff. There’s little room for characterization, and ultimately the real intention behind Jacmel and Louise’s kidnapping remains a mystery besides the age-old blackmail for money scheme. But Haggard and his screenwriter Robert Carrington manage to at least give Jacmel a storied past thanks to the detective work that Commander William Bulloch (Nicol Williamson) and his crew get up to when they’re called to the scene after Dave foolishly shotguns a policeman down in the street.
Kinski plays up Jacmel in fine, generic fashion, enacting the same affect and demeanor many of his other evil characters elicit in prior horror films. But the standout star of the film is Williamson, taking no shit within the film whatsoever and portraying the Commander as the type of guy no one ever wants to cross. His miserable growls, annoyed stares, and drily sarcastic deliveries tell the story of a man who gives no fucks besides getting the victims out of the apartment safely, and it’s a joy to watch him every moment he’s on screen – from remarking how helpful it will be to have Philip’s distraught mother on the scene to bursting through a basement wall in full motorcycle cop regalia.
Interestingly enough, the black mamba scenes are the least interesting parts of Venom, mostly because Haggard doesn’t spend much time on them. Our dangerous snake is mostly shown winding its way through ductwork or hissing pissily at the camera, and the characters’ encounters with him are too few to generate any suspense that should come from knowing that a snake is running amok somewhere in a narrow apartment. It’s unfortunate that the snake feels like an afterthought, because Dr. Marion Stowe (Sarah Miles) is an effective addition to the ensemble otherwise, with Miles giving a performance that ranges from feelings of horror to curious entertainment in the blink of an eye. Her slight grins when speaking of how dangerous the black mamba is tell a lot about the character, someone who is somewhat excited to get the chance to be put in this unique situation.
Venom is a surprisingly different film than other movies about killer snakes (see: Sssssss, Curse II: The Bite) and that ensures that most people will have their expectations dashed upon viewing. That said, the horror of this film relies on the viewer’s terror of the snake, and unfortunately the black mamba just isn’t featured enough to give this more suspense. But the crime aspect of Venom is rather engaging, and for those that enjoy procedurals, Haggard’s film will most likely impress.
4K UHD
Blue Underground previously released Venom in 2016 with a two-disc Blu-ray package, and here they have revisited the film with a new 4K 16-bit scan from the 35mm internegative. As you can see from our screenshot comparisons, there is marked improvement in detail featured on both the UHD and Blu-ray versions. Background details including the house’s wallpaper and furniture are more apparent, as are nicely contoured skin tones in the film’s various close-ups. Because of the internegative source, this release does still sport some chunkier grain which is certainly more visible in various low-lit sequences; while it resolves fairly nicely, there’s still a pretty heavy grain scale that persists throughout the film. Occasional degradations in quality also occur during the sporadic “snake-o-vision” camera shots. Still, it’s an exceptional improvement on Blue Underground’s previous Blu-ray, which often looked to have had some artificial smoothness incorporated. This release also features Dolby Vision/HDR 10 for the UHD disc, which does an effective job showcasing the foliage effects and enhancement of some black levels. This transfer is also particularly different from the 2016 release, which looks to have applied a more cool bluish tone rather than the prominent yellowing of that previous transfer. Skin tones can still look a bit tanned at times, but I think the color grading looks more natural than before.
Blue Underground has included the DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and 2.0 stereo tracks that were previously featured on the Blu-ray. This UHD set also includes a newly-created Dolby Atmos mix as well. I did watch this with the Atmos mix and it sounded rather good, with a robust soundtrack mix using the satellite speakers along with the sound effects generally using all speakers, while dialogue is mixed to the front center channel. For the most part, this seems to be relatively similar to the 5.1 surround with some additional enunciation; with that said, at times the central dialogue tends to suffer from some muting while the rest of the volume remains loud. The 2.0 stereo option is also a solid, more traditional, choice. English subtitles are included as well as French and Spanish.
Blue Underground has added a number of new features for this release, expanding on the limited items on the previous Blu-ray. First and foremost on both the UHD and the Blu-ray discs is a new audio commentary with Troy Howarth, Nathaniel Thompson, and Eugenio Ercolani. This is primarily led by Howarth with both Thompson and Ercolani offering interjections along the way, often adopting a conversational tone in which the three prompt each other with various questions and pointed criticisms; they dive into discussions about the film’s presence alongside Jaws rip-offs, its adaptation of the novel, and its marketing as a snake film despite its crime drama plotting. A very entertaining, illuminating listen.
A new 26-minute interview with editor Michael Bradsell documents how he initially got involved with Venom, the production’s difficulty working with Klaus Kinski, and reshoots that were required after Piers Haggard was brought in to direct in Tobe Hooper’s absence. There’s also a new 21 minute interview with makeup artist Nick Dudman, and he relates working on Oliver Reed and Klaus Kinski and dealing with both of their unique personalities. Critic Kim Newman gives a 23 minute interview in which he talks about the novel by Alan Scholefield and its basis in crime drama rather than a creature feature; he also identifies that the film is potentially a bit too faithful to its originator. Finally, a new interview with Allan Bryce of magazine The Dark Side offers up more tidbits about Oliver Reed/Klaus Kinski feud, Tobe Hooper’s initial work on the film, and Sean Connery’s initial casting; perhaps the most interesting item, though, is the reveal that Oliver Reed had a tattooed penis.
This release also collects the previous audio commentary with director Piers Haggard, theatrical trailers and TV spots, and an expanded image gallery. There’s a booklet essay by Michael Gingold about the film’s genesis that was included in the 2016 release. A new slipcover featuring the simplistic original poster artwork for Venom comes with this special edition along with reversible cover artwork.
Extra Features
- NEW 4K 16-bit scan from 35mm internegative with Dolby Vision HDR
- Ultra HD Blu-ray (2160p) and HD Blu-ray (1080p) Widescreen 1.85:1 feature presentations
- NEW Dolby Atmos track
- Audio Commentary #1 with Director Piers Haggard
- NEW Audio Commentary #2 with Film Historians Troy Howarth, Nathaniel Thompson and Eugenio Ercolani
- NEW Fangs For The Memories – Interview with Editor/Second Unit Director Michael Bradsell (1080p; 26:12)
- NEW A Slithery Story – Interview with Makeup Artist Nick Dudman (1080p; 21:00)
- NEW Mamba Memories – Interview with Author & Critic Kim Newman (1080p;
- NEW Pick Your Poison – Interview with The Dark Side’s Allan Bryce (1080p; 15:26)
- Theatrical Trailer (2160p/1080p; 1:25)
- Teaser trailer (1080p; 0:31)
- TV Spots (1080p; 1:41)
- NEWLY EXPANDED Poster & Still Gallery (chapter breaks; 2:07)
- BONUS Collectible Booklet with essay by Michael Gingold
- Reversible cover artwork
- NEW slipcover
Verdict
Venom is a suspenseful-enough film with a star-studded cast and plenty of stakes, though the snake could have used a bit more screentime. This new UHD release from Blue Underground features an impressive transfer that significantly improves video quality and plenty of special features that expand upon their 2016 Blu-ray release.
